The story
Originally called the Association of Immigration and Nationality Lawyers, the association was founded on October 14, 1946 by a group of 19 immigration lawyers and professionals in Manhattan, New York City. Twelve of the association founders had recently worked for the US Immigration and Naturalization Service, and saw an opportunity to use their professional standing "to elevate the standard and reputation of the practitioner appearing before the Immigration Service". Josh Koenigsberg served as the first president of the association with Gaspare Cusumano as vice president, Anita Streep as secretary, and Daniel Caputi as treasurer.
In 1982, the association established a national headquarters in Washington, D.C., and it was renamed the American Immigration Lawyers Association.
By 1985, the association had 1,800 members; a three-fold increase from 1975. As of 2017, there were more than 15,000 AILA members in 39 chapters in the United States and across the world. The AILA has attorneys from more than 58 countries, including in North America, South America, Africa, and parts of Europe.
From Wikipedia’s article on American Immigration Lawyers Association, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.5